o many teens are now having sex at very young ages. Besides the fact the Bible says to abstain from extramarital sex, what are teens missing when they have sex outside of marriage?

According to Dr. Juliana Slattery, Christian psychologist, teens miss a lot by being sexually active. She refers to a lot of reports coming out from recent research looking at the neurochemical changes that happen when people have sex. For example, she says the research conducted by the authors of “Hooked: New Science on How Casual Sex is Affecting Our Children" (by Joe S. McIlhaney, Jr. and Freda McKissic Bush, Northfield Publishing, 2008) shows that “one’s brain begins to wire itself based on sexual experiences.”

“When a married couple has sex, there's a bonding that occurs again and again and again,” Slattery explains. “It's not just an emotional or physical type thing; it's a bonding that’s recorded in the brain. So a husband and a wife look at each other differently than they would anyone else, and that creates a loyalty and a closeness that continues to build.”

Dr. Slattery points out that when this happens outside of marriage, it causes teens to start wiring towards someone they’re not committed to, which then causes two things to happen.

First of all, when that relationship breaks up – which most of them do – there's an incredible amount of pain. Slattery says, “Actually the brain records the pain in such a way that it mirrors physical pain. Second, it breaks and waters down their ability to later bond with a husband or wife, as marriages are designed to do. Some people use the example of duct tape: the more times you tape it to something and rip it off, the less adhesive it becomes. Recent brain studies have shown that the same thing happens with our emotions.”

The more teenagers have sex with different partners, it actually prohibits their ability to bond with their spouse some day. Then the twofold result is that married sex life is not good and higher divorce rates occur.

She adds that the research is evidence that when God says reserve sex for marriage, it's not just because of a moral standard; it's because it truly is what's best for us. God designed sex to create that a special bonding between a husband and wife so that no matter what, they want to stay with each other.

“The way God designed our bodies to bond with our husband or wife is a beautiful thing that the world and peer pressure is destroying for teens,” Slattery states.

She points out another importance of saving sex for marriage. “On an emotional level, when the couple has been with just each other, there are no comparisons, no flashbacks, none of that. This provides great security for a married couple.”